Henry Lowther was the one who found Paul Rutherford’s body, after forcing open the door of his flat with a police officer and a friend. The date was 6 August 2007; the death was determined to have occurred the previous day. Rutherford had not been heard from for several days. For at least a year, it was known that he had once again fallen into depression (“I’m seriously, seriously depressed,” he had said in an interview with All About Jazz) and that he was in precarious financial conditions. Rutherford — a 67-year-old Londoner — had been one of the leading figures of European jazz, particularly within the radical scene. He was central to the Copernican revolution that began in the mid-1960s, overturning musical forms as well as the ways in which music was managed, experienced and conveyed. His path was uncompromising, sustained by a clear political stance: he was an […]
Notes from an Almanac: Paul Rutherford in Moers
The great British trombonist (1940–2007) lived a difficult life, and even his recordings are now hard to find, as we explain here
